


The Perfect Proposal

by Burgie



Category: Star Stable
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-06
Updated: 2019-08-06
Packaged: 2020-08-10 07:46:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,714
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20131846
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Burgie/pseuds/Burgie
Summary: When Jay 'stole' date day, Willow was never expecting... this. Willow belongs to willownorthbook and Jay belongs to SpaceUnicornDot.





	The Perfect Proposal

**Author's Note:**

  * For [willownorthbook](https://archiveofourown.org/users/willownorthbook/gifts), [SpaceUnicornDot](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpaceUnicornDot/gifts).

There had been a time when Willow had hated a change in routine. When a change meant chaos, meant that her carefully-constructed world had begun unraveling. But now, thanks to her friends and thanks to Jay, she'd become much more relaxed about the whole thing. And she was even content to make a new routine- like, say, setting aside a day in the week to be a designated date day, when she'd spend the whole day on a date with Jay, the odd druid guy who'd grown to be so much more to her. Her boyfriend, the love of her life, her guiding star, whatever sappy thing she felt like calling it today. Not that she ever called it that out loud. That was Jay's job, because he didn't mind the gentle teasing of any who heard it.

This would have been Willow's day to choose where they went and what they did on their date, but Jay had suggested that maybe he could choose today.

"But you chose last time," Willow had protested.

"I know," Jay had said, giving her a gentle kiss on the lips. But she'd noticed something else in his eyes, too. An anxiety that was strange to see on him.

"Wait, what's wrong?" Willow had asked, holding his gaze.

"Nothing," Jay had said. "Just- can I choose next week? Please? I've got some plans."

"Fine," Willow had said with a playful roll of her eyes. "But I get to choose the next two date days."

"Deal," Jay had said, his shoulders sagging in relief. And he'd definitely felt just a touch more relaxed as Willow had snuggled into his embrace to enjoy their movie night.

Right now, though, Jay was still asleep in bed beside Willow, his blonde hair mussed, his runes glowing faintly on his skin. That had been something that would have scared Willow off at first, but, now that Willow knew what he was, she quite enjoyed the glimmer of pink that was cast by his runes. With a smile, Willow reached across to gently tuck a lock of Jay's hair behind his ear, revealing a rune that she just had to gently kiss. Mercifully, he didn't stir, and Willow grinned as she wriggled out of bed and made her way to the kitchen. Jay may have 'stolen' her turn at date day, but she could still make him a damn good breakfast.

It was while she was whisking the eggs for scrambled eggs that Willow heard the groan of floorboards in their bedroom followed by the familiar soft tread of Jay's footsteps coming through the house until her boyfriend appeared in the kitchen, much to the delight of their menagerie of pets.

"Don't give me that look, your mother's out of bed so you've had your breakfast already," said Jay, crouching down to pet Rune's furry head. He laughed as Brownie shoved his 'sibling' out of the way to receive pets from Jay, and Willow smiled fondly at the sight before returning her attention to the pan that she was now pouring the egg mixture into.

"Morning," said Willow, smiling at her boyfriend. Jay smiled back at her, and there was a note of something different in his eyes as he caught sight of the promise ring glittering on Willow's finger. She rarely took it off.

"Good morning," said Jay, wrapping his arms around her from behind and kissing her cheek. The motions felt so familiar, and Willow remembered way back to the day when she'd received this ring on her finger. She'd kissed Jay exactly like this. Maybe... but no. She dismissed the notion that this could be something else, instead focusing on breakfast. Thoughts like that were only going to hike her anxiety, which was the last thing a date day needed.

"Do I get any hints about where we're going?" Willow asked as Jay rested his head on her shoulder.

"I was thinking about heading out to the Valedale mountains," said Jay. Willow laughed as his breath tickled her neck.

"That sounds like a good idea," said Willow. "When will we leave?"

"As soon as we've had breakfast and gotten ready," said Jay. He sounded eager, but also... nervous. Willow didn't know why he'd be nervous, though- this was just an ordinary date day where they explored the mountains. In Valedale, too, so the likelihood of finding any wolves would be very rare.

"Then I guess I'll eat fast," said Willow, grinning at him as she tipped her head back to look up at him. Jay laughed gently down at her, burying his head in her shoulder just once before stepping away. Willow only noticed, once he'd gone, that there had been an odd kind of tension in his body. Telling herself to relax (which was easier now than it had ever been before, especially around Jay), Willow focused instead on making breakfast.

Breakfast, at least, made this day feel normal as Willow sat down to eat opposite her boyfriend. Their feet tangled together, the top of Willow's foot resting to the arch of Jay's foot, and every so often, one of them would drop a scrap of food to the four-legged 'vultures' around their feet, trying to keep it a secret from the other. Once they caught eyes while doing it, though, and grinned which quickly turned into laughter.

By the time it came time to get dressed in her usual date clothes (just a nice dress and some pants underneath for riding, her hair down), Willow's anxiety had melted away. This day would be fine, their date days always were. Well, barring that one Valentine's Day near-disaster, but even that had ended up with a ring on Willow's finger. Glancing at it now, Willow felt her heart pound. It was just a coincidence that this day felt the same as that day had, this was just an ordinary date day and she should stop worrying about it.

Jay looked nice. Too nice. Willow tried hard not to let her anxiety show, but she was pretty sure that she paled a little when she saw Jay.

"Willow?" Jay asked. "What's wrong?"

"Uh, nothing," said Willow, trying to calm her suddenly-pounding heart. "Just- am I underdressed?"

"No, you're fine," said Jay, giving her a reassuring smile. "You look perfect, Wills. I love it when you show off your tattoos." Willow smiled tentatively, her heart still hammering but somewhat calmer now. "And your scars. I love every part of you."

"That makes me sound like I'm really underdressed," said Willow with a laugh. "Even though I know I'm not but- you know."

"Does it help?" Jay asked. Willow nodded.

"Yeah, it helps a lot," said Willow. "Thanks."

"I think I should know how to calm you down by now," said Jay, smiling fondly at her before closing the distance between them with a kiss that immediately calmed Willow's racing thoughts. Jay was right- this would be fine. Absolutely fine. She had nothing to worry about.

As they were exploring more mountainous terrain today, Willow decided to take their heavier horses, Jay on Snowdrop and Willow on Faith. Rebel looked a little put-out, but a few sugarcubes and loving pets helped soothe her hurt feelings. And then, with lunch and a picnic blanket packed, they were off, riding out of Mistfall at a canter so as to get to their destination faster. They slowed once they reached the mountains, though, but not just so that they could climb them easier. Jay's sketchbook came out, and Willow smiled at the sight and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

"I've heard that there are secrets in these mountains," said Jay. "Is that true?"

"Yeah, not that I let myself have the freedom to explore them much before," said Willow.

"Then it's a good thing you've got me, huh?" said Jay, grinning brightly at her. Willow laughed, blushing. She'd actually started exploring more since meeting her friends, but with Jay... on top of the whole 'non-native' thing, there was the added layer of introducing some more of the beauty of nature to someone who wasn't native to this earth, this dimension. And he just loved everything so much.

"Let's go find some secrets," said Willow, nudging Faith forward off the little ledge that held the pole bending apocalypse race. Jay followed right behind her on Snowdrop, and Willow felt the thrill of exploring someplace new wash over her. It was like the Red String Trail, or the Forgotten Fields- somewhere that she'd always known was there, but that she hadn't really taken the time to experience and explore before. And she had plenty of time to look at everything now as Jay stopped every so often to sketch a new flower or bush or interesting piece of moss. Willow trailed her hand over some of the bushes, encouraging flowers to bloom, which never ceased to delight Jay.

"Hey, what's this?" Jay asked after a while, heading down a small slope. Snowdrop nickered as she almost bumped into a wooden fence, but Jay turned her and managed to find the way into a little area that Willow had never been in before.

"Oh," said Willow, feeling the slight prickle as her Pandorian scars lit up. Jay's runes were back on his skin now too, glowing brighter than they had that morning. But Jay didn't bother dimming them, since there was nobody around here to hide them from.

"Wow," said Jay, dismounting Snowdrop and looking around. It was a nice little place, almost feeling sacred. There were three runestones clustered at one end, surrounded by little potted flowers, but other than that, just a few small trees and bushes and a nice patch of grass that would make a perfect picnic spot.

"Looks like we found the place to have lunch," said Willow, gesturing to the grass. Jay grinned at her, turning to take the food and picnic blanket from Snowdrop's saddlebags. His hands trembled slightly as he unfurled the picnic blanket and set it down, but Willow didn't pay too much mind to it. He was probably just hungry.

"You've really never been here before?" Jay asked as they ate.

"No," said Willow, shaking her head. "I didn't even know this place existed."

"Almost like it's a secret little hideaway just for lovers," said Jay. "Or druids, I guess, considering the runestones."

"It's peaceful," said Willow. "I could almost fall asleep here."

"I didn't pack that much food," said Jay. "Not enough for you to go into a food coma."

"Ha, bet," said Willow with a laugh. "You always pack too much because you're worried about me going hungry, like I'm malnourished or something."

"Is that such a bad thing?" Jay asked. Willow shook her head.

"Of course not," said Willow, smiling. "It just forces me to rest when I eat too much." Jay laughed, leaning back on his elbows. He hadn't eaten much, which was strange.

"That looks like a nice little outlook up there," said Jay, his eyes straying to a little grass outcrop not far from their picnic spot. "We should go up there, have a look at the view."

"And then can I have a post-lunch nap?" Willow asked.

"Yes, I promise," said Jay, extending his hand for her to take. Willow took it and allowed Jay to help her to her feet, which were bare while they ate their picnic. The grass looked nice on the way up to the outlook, though, so Willow remained barefoot as the two of them walked up there.

The lake did look quite nice from up here, Willow discovered as she stood beside Jay. She took in a deep breath of the fresh smell of water, mingled with the scents of nature.

"Okay, this was worth missing out on the nap," said Willow. She looked at Jay, who suddenly looked serious. Almost solemn. "What's wrong?"

"Just thinking about everything," said Jay. "About how much my life has changed since I met you. For the better, despite everything. How much I love you. How good it is to see you enjoying the simple things in life. How much we've both changed since knowing each other. We've become better people, I think."

"Yeah, definitely," said Willow. Tears came to her eyes as she thought about it. About everything. How a girl from the city had come here to have a nice summer holiday, which had turned into many summers and winters and springs and falls. How she'd had some of the worst times of her life since starting her journey with Hawkeye, but also some of the best. How she'd found love in the most unexpected place, in the most unexpected way.

"Maybe... maybe our relationship should change, too," said Jay. "I-in a good way, I hope." Now, Willow turned to look at him, and the tears of nostalgia were replaced instantly by fresh ones of surprise and joy as she saw Jay on one knee before her, holding out a ring box.

"Another promise ring?" Willow asked, her voice sounding slightly strangled.

"Not this time," said Jay, and Willow could hear his heart in his throat, could see it, too, in the way his runes glowed. "Willow Northbook, I love you more than I ever thought possible. So much more. And knowing you and loving you is the best thing that has ever happened to me. Will you marry me?"

"Yes," Willow managed to get out before she pulled Jay up into her arms and kissed him, her hands going to his cheeks. She felt like her heart was exploding in excitement, like the tears of happiness would never end.

"Let me get the ring on," said Jay with a laugh, and there were tears in his own eyes as he plucked the ring out of its bedding with trembling fingers and carefully slid it onto Willow's finger above her promise ring. This new one, though, was darker in colour, though Willow knew somehow that the metal was no less precious. It was engraved with a design of leaves, almost like a wreath, with tiny sapphires embedded into the metal and a few runes scattered amongst the leaves, almost like they were hiding. Willow recognised that some of the runes were runes of love and protection, though she didn't know what the others meant. She knew exactly who to ask, though. The twin rings glimmered in the sunlight, reflecting it just as the water did. Willow let out a sob as she looked at it before hugging her new fiance tighter, pressing her lips to his again and again and again.

"I knew you were up to something," said Willow with a watery laugh. "I thought it might be this but I just- I didn't want to worry about it."

"I've never been so nervous in my life," said Jay, blurting a laugh. He was still shaking, as was she. "I was hoping you'd say yes but I was just so worried."

"Well, everyone else is doing it, I guess," said Willow with a laugh. "Oh my god, we're getting married!"

"Yeah!" said Jay, his eyes shining with so much happiness that Willow wouldn't have been surprised if the glow had been from more than just his runes. He kissed her again, fingers stroking over her hair, before resting his forehead against hers. "I love you so much, Willow."

"I love you too, Jay," said Willow, still blinking tears from her eyes. "I think I need to sit down now, though."

"Well, we've got the blanket for it," said Jay, gesturing back to the picnic blanket behind them. Willow smiled, taking Jay's hand in her own as she followed him again. Their hands were still linked as they lay down together, Willow snuggled up against Jay's side as she looked into his eyes. Eyes that had once seemed so unique and beautiful, and they still seemed like that. But they were more than that, now. So much more. Home and love and the promise that everything would be okay. Safety. Security. Jay. And now, this more traditional promise that Jay would be by her side into the future and beyond. Nothing, not even Garnok himself, could tear them apart. Willow would do anything to ensure that.


End file.
